The Yorkshire contribution in Cheteshwar Pujara's re-emergence as a batsman
Ever since returning from the tour of the West Indies, one member of the present Indian team has completely turned a corner with his style of play.
Cheteshwar Pujara was dropped during the tour to the Caribbean for his slow style of play and it was an issue which only he could resolve and resolve he did, by employing a more positive approach to his batting, that emphasised on looking for more boundaries and rotation of strike.
Obviously, in order to change anything about yourself, you will have to do certain things more differently and Pujara, that opportunity to alter his game came when he went to Yorkshire in the early part of the summer of 2015 and the results of the work put in there is there for all to see in the home season now.
Speaking about his stint over there, the Director of the club Martyn Moxon said that the right-hander worked on his balance and credited him for his work ethic and humility.
“The main thing Cheteshwar was working on when he was with us was his balance. He was ensuring that his head didn't fall over to the off side. He had a great work ethic and is a very humble and kind man, who was very popular in the dressing room. He had a couple of low scores early in his stay but he scored an excellent hundred just before he left and showed his class and ability,“ he told The Times of India.
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The Saurashtra batsman also received praise from former head coach of the team Jason Gillespie, who said he was a great fan of the Indian’s batting and added that Pujara spent some time looking at the manner in which the England bowlers bowled and also spoke to a few of his Yorkshire teammates to find out more about them.
“I have been following his game. I'm a big Pujara fan. Though he didn't really analyse much on England bowlers during his stay, he did spend time observing footage of bowlers he was going to face and spoke to his Yorkshire teammates about opponents,“ Gillespie told the Times of India.
The Indian has been in sensational form during this ongoing home season, scoring three back-to-back hundreds in the Indore Test against New Zealand, the Rajkot Test against England and the Vizag Test against England.
As the year comes to an end, Pujara will look to end on a high and come back fresh for the next season.